Plastic and other panels are used in many different applications for a wide variety of modular or multi-component products. In many of these applications, a plurality of panels and/or components are interconnected to one another to form a finished product assembly. A number of different structures and methods have been devised that are useful to interconnect or attach two adjacent components to one another. A number of different accessory devices have also been devised that attach or otherwise mount to the panels that are useful for hanging or otherwise suspending objects from the panels.
In one example, a typical panel may provide a plurality of access holes therein. A typical hanger has prongs or hooks that are adapted for receipt in selected ones of the access holes. The prongs or hooks are inserted in the selected holes to suspend the hanger from the panel. In other examples, hangers, hooks, or mounting brackets are simply fastened to a panel utilizing conventional fasteners such as screws, bolts, or the like.
Problems associated with such accessory devices and mounting methods are abundant. Conventional threaded fasteners result in use of a number of component parts (nuts, bolts, washers, and the like) that can be easily lost or misplaced and that require significant labor to install. The hook-on accessory devices typically hang relatively loosely and, thus, can be easily dislodged and do not provide a sturdy mount for hanging objects. The fastener mount accessory devices can easily come loose if not properly fastened. Also, the fasteners can become loosened if the hanger is used over and over again, again resulting in a less than sturdy mount for hanging objects.